Incinerator



` March ze, 1924., MSNM G. SUTCLJFFE INGINERATOR Filed Aug. 5. 1923 2 Shasta-15mm?, a

March i8 392% G'. SUTCLIFFE INCINERATR Fned Aug. s, 1923 2V Shasta-Shaw 2 Geog@ 4 fllt? Zig f Patented Mar.. 18, 1924.

isaiasi I GEORGE SUTCLIFFE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR. F ONE-HALF T0 GEORGE T.

WILLIAMS, OF CHICfLGO. ILLINOIS.

INCINERATOR.

p Application iued August s, was. serial mi 655,399.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE SUTCLIFE, subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and a resident of Chicago, Ain the county of Cookand State -of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Incinerators, of whichthc following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in iucinerators and more particularly to furnaces used in dwellings, apartment buildings, and hotels, for consuming garbage and re use. These devices are also frequently used for the heating ofwaterffor domestic purposes. l

The object of the invention is to provide a practical construction for an incinerator, calculated to overcome a number of disadvantages present in such devices as heretofore constructed and erectechso 'far as I am familiar with the-art.

An incinerator is ordinarily erected in the basement of a building with a chute leading thereto and having doors at the diiferent floors through which the refuse is dumped.A The usual equipment provides also for a smoke pipe leading from the incinerator to the chimney for carrying 0E the products of combustion, the air supply being drawn from the basement, through a damper in the ashdoor, in the same manner' as in the usual furnace construction. There is ordinarily provided no communication between the chimney and the refuse' chute so that the lat-` ter is practically a dead airspace in -which the odorsA accumulate. This condition 1s further aggravated by the 'falling masses of refuse which creates a, pressure tending to force the air through the doors, thus creating an unwholesome Aand exceedingly obnoxioussource of anno ance.

As will be presently polgtd out, the chief purpose of the incineratoi", herein disclosed, is to create a positive `draft 1n the chute by an improved arrangement of lues, whereby the air pressure in the chute 1s lalways less than atmospheric, thus avoiding any possibility of a back pressure such as would tend to expel the air into the rooms above.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a view in longitudinal vertical section through the incinerator.

Figure 2 is a view in vertical section taken on line 2, 2 of Figure .i Figure 8 is e view in horizontal section Il' taken on line 3, Bof Figure 1, and 'y l Figure 4 is' a detailed view in side elevat1on` of the gate operating lever.

As hereinbefore suggested, the general design of thc incinerator resemblesI somewhat lthat of a furnace, being preferably constructed of brick work vsubstantially as follows: The four upright walls are erected upon the floor or foundation, and inrectangular form, and consists of a front wall 1, a rear wall 2, side walls 3, 3, and a top, wall tl, which form the outer shell of the incinerator. i Spaced inwardly from one of the side walls 3, the left hand wall Figure 2) is an inner vertical wall 5, exten ing from the floor to the top wall 4, and forming between it and the outerside wall, a comparativelyl narrow chamber or flue, which w1ll be hereinafter described. y

The space between the inner vertical wall 5 and opposite outer wall 3, and extending. from the front to the rear wall, may be roughly divided into the forward combustion zone 6` and the rear drying zone'?, the former having an arched roof 8, extendin transversely thereover. A grate 9 is locate in the combustion zone, and supports the fuel bed 10. The space below the grate forms the ash pit 11. Injthe front wall 1 are provided the usualiire and ash doors 12 and 13. At the rear of the ash pit is a transverse wall 14, forming a sup ort for the rear of the grate 9, and vthe orward portion of'a rearwardly and upwardly curving wall, known as the drying hearth 15, which terminates in substantially tan ential relation with the rear wall 2, ,andv acts as a forwardly inclined bottom wall for the refuse chute` 16, at .the rear of the incinerator. The refuse chute is a vertical passage formedy of brick which extends upwardly and serves the floors above, each apartmet,"suite, or'l room as the case may be, having a door 16 located at a convenient place in the wall of the kitchen, which is opened to receive the refuse.

At the lower end of the chute 16, and at the point where the same enters the rear or drying zone 7, of vthe incinerator is mounted a swinging mper or gate 17, su ported upon a lio ontal shaft 18 exten ing through one of the side walls. Mountis an oieninc'I 2l. havin a ratin 22 theree s g i i i to the iioor at the rear right hand corner. j

in, saidopening forming the inlet to a Hue 23, extending 'downwardly at the rear of the :,incinerator, 'and preferably exterior to the rear wall 2. As clearlyv shown 1n Figure r2, the Hue ollows an oblique direction from the opening 21 to the top of the furnace and thence continues in avertical direction The lower end of the vertical fiue 23 is connected with a' horizontal flue orl duct 24,'

which passes forwardly iinderneath the floor or bottom of theinqinerator, to apoint below the front` wall v1*. At this point the flue 24divides' into ybranches 25, 25, one

extending upwardly lthrough the front wall, and terminates in an opening 26 on one side of the ash door 13,V and the otherextending laterally -and 'then upward, terminating in a like opening 26 on the opposite side of the 'ash door. These openings com municate with the ash pit 11.

11n the` wall 5 of the combustion zone 6, and near the forward end, is an outlet opening 27 which communicates with the vertiealA space 28between the said wall 5 and the adjacent outer wall 3. rI-his space may be occupied by heating coils forv heating Water for domestic purposes. As clearly shown in Figure 3, the wall 5 joins the transverse wall 14, so that the space 28 communicates at its lower end with a-larger space 29, extending the full width of the incinerator, below the drying liearthll. Projecting into the space below thedrying hearth, and from the left hand side wall 3 is a transverse bafi wall 30, extending parallel to and-spaced rearwardly of the wall 14. This wall terminates short of the opposite side wall 3, thereby forming an additional passage or duct 31, and converting the space below the hearth into' a circuitousor S-shaped passage. Ait` the end ofthe rearmost passage 31,V is. an

yo" ening communicating with the base of a c imney or smoke pipe 32, shown as extend- `ing vertically upward just to the left of the chute. 16 (Figure 2); The chimney manifestly con'nnunicates` with the atmosphere above the roof of the building and the same principle of draft is applicable as in the ordina-ry heating furnace.

The action of the incinerator will be understood from the following: In the nrst place it is to be understood that n tire is maintained in the fire-box either continuously as is customary in large buildings, or periodically. as the 'case muy be. Normally, the gate 17 isheld in closed position hy the counter weight 20 and swung into open position bypthe attendant. at certain intervals, say, once or twice a day. depending on the accumulation of refuse to be consumed. The refuse, as it is emptied into the chute from the different floor levels. is retained at the bottom of the chute by thc gale. until the attendant swings the gute forwardly into open position. This allows the refuse and garbage to become partiaily dried,`and the excess liquid to drain'oif. When the gate is swung open. this accumulation of partially dricdrefuse is delivered onto the drying hearth 15 where it. is gradually reduced to ashes by the heat,.the combustibles being consumed and carried ofi' with the other clean;

The products of combustion are carried,

beneath the dryinc' hearth thronghfthe passages 29 and 31. t e heat being utilized for maintaining the hearth 15 at a high ternperature, thus promoting thc' drying and partial reduction of thel refuse.

Combustion is maintainedfin'the incinera-I tor by a vcontinuous supplyr of air, which is delivered to the combustion zone in the fol-` lowing manner: i

The draft created bythe chimney manifestly draws the products of combustion through the outlet 27, downwardly through the space 28, and thence through the passages 29 and 31, to the chimney. The air supply to the combustion zone originates in the chute 16, the chimney draft being sutiicient to create a. sub;atmospheric pressure therein, thus drawing'thel air from-the rooms through the refuse discharge openings above.

23, and thence carried forwardly beneath the incinerator, entering the ash' pit at its forward end. `In the-operation of the incin eratorfthe Vash door is kept'closed, Vexce t for emptying the ashes, 'so that the ony i source of air supply is through the flue 23. Manifestly odors will rise from the accumulation of garbage at the base of the chute, but these are carried through the grated opening 21, just above and thence through the incinerator to the chimney. Further- `more, dueto the down draft inthe chute 16,

#these odors eannot'rise above opening "21, to the floorsy above and asa result no trace of odors can be detected by reason of air esca mg or forced through the refuse doors. n other wordsathere is a constant suction in the chute tendin to .draw the air ifrom the rooms, particu arly ywhen the l idoors are momentarily opened, tov de osit -fthe refuse. nBy the closing off of al air inlets to the combustion chamber other than through the due 23,l the draft is maintained at all times although manifestly is increased materially when a lire is being maintained in the incinerator. In this manner the disposal and consummation of refuse and garbage can be successfully accomplished with the complete elimination of odors, this being primarily the result of the i separate flue, which b `passes the air from the chute to the com ustion zone, and' indirectly connects the chute with the chimney, thereby maintaining a constant circulation or down-'draft in the chute,- Other improvements in structure also contribute" to the results herein set forth, all of which are disclosed in more concise form in the appended claims.

I claim as-my invention:

1. An incinerator comprising a combustion chamber, a grate therein for supportin a bed offuel, a'chimney communicating with said combustion chamber, a refuse chute opening into said combustion cham-` ber and a duct communicating with said chute above the opening'into said combustion chamber and leading to the space neath the grate.

2. An incinerator comprising ar combus bel tion chamber having a grate in the forward portion, a' hearth at the rear of said grate and an outlet flue leading from said combastion zone, to the atmosphere, a refuse chute opening into said combustion chamber and above said hearth, and ahy-pass duct opening from said chute above the op`enin -said hearth, a `chimney connecting with said passages, a chute opening into said chamber above said hearth. agate mounted above saidhearth and adaptedl to be swung into posit-ions to open and close the lower end of said chute, and a duct communicating with said chute at a predetermined distance.

above its lower end, and extending exterior of said chamber to the ash pit. l

In witness whereof, l hereunto subscribe my name this rst day of August, A. D.,

GEORGE SUTCLIFFE. 

